Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in incarceration, but he was staying under home detention pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.
Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns
In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the tracking monitor to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the protest called by his son.
His son, Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so followers could "pray for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the potential of his move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a record of organizing to seek refuge through a embassy office", a announcement said.
The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, prompting him to impose a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being held in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a custody hearing on the next day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.
They also asked that he be permitted to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate Lula and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The plot was stopped because it didn't receive the backing of the army and air force commanders. His successor was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the capital, the capital city.
The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The judges found that the protesters had been incited by him whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, restore order and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the next presidential race.
